Adi Talwar
A view of NYCHA Wickoff Gardens from the intersection of Butler Street and Nevins Street
Through updated policies, HUD will require landlords—including public housing authorities like NYCHA, and property owners who accept HUD-affiliated housing vouchers—to take a more holistic approach when vetting potential renters.
That funding will go towards the New York City Continuum of Care (CoC) to address street homelessness, including the creation of a centralized “unit” to connect people with outreach teams and resources for finding shelter, healthcare and stable housing.
Niani Taylor, who lives in Brooklyn’s Van Dyke Houses, is among the small but growing number of NYCHA residents who report income from self-employment. Advocates say the Housing Authority could foster more entrepreneurs by expanding initiatives like its Business Pathways program, which helped Taylor grow her catering company. “I put my all into it.”
More than 36,000 NYCHA apartments have either undergone conversion or are in the process of being converted to the RAD-PACT program, which officials say has helped drive billions in needed repairs. But tenants—some of whom will get a chance to vote this year on whether they want their developments to join the initiative—remain distrustful of the change.
The rally comes after state lawmakers released budget proposals that include up to $389 million for public housing and Section 8 residents who were left out from the state’s pandemic-era Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP). But tenants are pushing for more, pointing to estimates that public housing tenants across New York owe nearly $590 million in rent.
In a budget resolution unveiled last week, the State Senate earmarked $389 million for public housing and Section 8 tenants statewide who applied for, but were left out from, New York’s Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP). The Assembly proposed $385 million for the same purpose.
Adams will announce a proposal during her State of the City speech Wednesday to support and expand NYCHA tenant-owned businesses, the number of which has jumped significantly in recent years as residents turn to home-based ventures such as catering, child care services and carpentry.
The New York City Comptroller’s Office will investigate oversight of NYCHA contractors and eviction rates at privatized developments — the first of two probes under a new initiative that lets NYCHA tenants weigh in directly on public housing audits.
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